Chief Justice On Why Father Told Him Not To Sell Pune Flat Till He Retires

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud retires today. Justice Sanjiv Khanna will take the oath as the next Chief Justice tomorrow.

In his farewell speech at an event organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud remembered a conversation with his father, former Chief Justice YV Chandrachud, about a flat in Pune.

"He bought this small flat in Pune. I asked him, 'why on earth are you buying a flat in Pune? when are you going to stay there?' He told me, 'I know I am never going to stay there. I am not sure how long I will be with you. But keep this flat until the last day of your tenure as a judge.' I said why is that. He said, 'If you feel that your moral integrity or your intellectual integrity is compromised, I want you to know that you have a roof above your head. Never allow yourself to be compromised either as a lawyer or as a judge because you have no place of your own'," the Chief Justice said, recounting the father-son chat. The Chief Justice said his father was very disciplined. "But he didn't discipline us as children. He thought that we should learn the ideals of discipline looking at the way he led a disciplined life," he said.

The event was attended by the Chief Justice's family too. Remembering his mother, the Chief Justice said, "I was a sick child, I was prone to falling sick and my mother must have spent night after night awake to ensure I get well. I still remember her saying, 'Medicine is like the Ganges and the doctor was in the position of Narayan (god)'. She told me while I was growing up, 'I have named you Dhananjay, but the 'dhan' is not material wealth, I want you to acquire knowledge'."